The Teenage Days
by LemonTwist
Summary: PG13 for adult situations, including drug and alcohol use, language, and sexual situations. Involves Taiora, Takari, a little bit of a Daikari at the beginning, Mimato, and other individuals. Complete.
1. Problems Arise

"Yes! Go TK, run like hell!" Kari yelled from bleacher seats reserved for the Odaiba High dance team. TK dribbled the ball while running wildly from one end of the court to the other. The apposing team stole the ball from TK and ran back the same way TK just ran from. One of TK's teammates grabbed the ball and passed it to TK. There was five seconds left, and it was way too much of a risk to attempt to get down the court in time. TK took a deep breath, and all of the chatter and screaming and stomping disappeared. Nobody was there, except him. He jumped up, as light as air, lifted his arms gracefully and released the ball from his hands, and watched it travel from one end of the court to other, straight through the hoop. The excitement of the win only came at the moment that his teammate dumped a bucket of ice-cold water on him, as well as his coach.  
  
"Way to go, man! You kicked their asses!" Davis said as he did his little handshake thing that no one could explain.  
  
"Yeah, you did great! I'm so proud of you." Kari said with a smile as she walked up from behind Davis. He just gave her a huge grin of embarrassment before he was pulled into a noogie from his elder brother.  
  
"That was awesome, man! You gotta teach Davis how to do that some time." Matt joked.  
  
"Ha ha." Davis sneered.  
  
"Chill man." TK chuckled. He pulled Matt's arm off and ruffled his hair.  
  
"Anyway, I gotta go. Babysitting for the neighbor. Always need that dope money, ya know. I'll see y'all later." Davis said. Everybody chuckled at his comment and said goodbye to him.  
  
"What do you say we go out to celebrate?" Mimi said after Davis left. "There's this little club on 14th that I could get us all into." Mimi said with a sly grin.  
  
"Uh, sure. Sounds...Great." Kari said, uninterested.  
  
"Oh c'mon, Kari. It's time you got out and experienced the real world." Sora nudged.  
  
"I don't know. I just..." She started, but gave up knowing that Mimi and Sora weren't going to stop until she gave in. She sighed heavily. "Sure. Let's do it." Kari said with a plastered smile.  
  
"Great. I'll drive!" Mimi said cheerfully. They all started to leave, but TK took Kari's hand and brought her back a bit so no one else could here them.  
  
"Kari, what are you thinking? You've never had a drink before." TK said worriedly. He grabbed his gym bag and followed the rest of gang out of the gymnasium.  
  
"Well...Maybe it's about time that I did." Kari said. Her voice sounded unsure of what she was about to do, but nevertheless do it.  
  
"This just isn't you, Kar." TK sighed.  
  
"Don't worry; I'll be fine, ok?" Kari said.  
  
"Ok...But if something happens, don't expect me to hold your hand while you throw up." TK chuckled.  
  
"Don't worry." Kari said with a real, reassuring smile.  
  
"Hey, you two! Hurry it up!" Tai yelled from his car.  
  
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"Hey Jason." Mimi sweet-talked the bouncer.   
  
"Oh boy." TK said as he rolled his eyes. Mimi gave him stern glare, but turned back to the bouncer with calm, seductive eyes.  
  
"Listen, I have a couple of friends who forgot their I.D.s at home, do you think you could let them in?" She asked so sweetly it could hurt someone's tooth.  
  
"I dunno, Mimi. What do I get outa it?" Jason asked loosely. Mimi sighed and pulled out a $20. "Alright. C'mon right in." Jason said as he held his arm out towards the door. Mimi led the way followed by Matt who wrapped his arm around her waist, then Tai with his hand on Sora's ass which made TK and Kari almost laugh uncontrollably if they hadn't stopped themselves. They walked into a huge room that had music blaring, and the only lights you could see came from the bar or the UV glow lights. Mimi led everybody to one of the tables and ordered everybody a round of drinks.  
  
"So, what do you guys think?" Mimi said as she leaned on Matt's shoulder.  
  
"It's very loud." Kari said loudly, trying to talk over the blaring music.  
  
"Yeah, isn't it great?" Mimi chuckled. "Oh, here are our drinks." She said as the waiter brought a tray of glasses to the table.  
  
"Uh, Mimi, what exactly is this?" TK asked after he took a whiff of the strong liquor.  
  
"It's called Chartreuse."  
  
"And what's mine?" Kari asked after she made a sour face from the taste.  
  
"Yours is called Illusion."  
  
"I'm sure it'll cause some." Kari chuckled. TK chuckled with her. Mimi sighed.  
  
"Here Kari, gimme your drink." Mimi instructed. Kari gave her the drink, and Mimi pulled out a shot glass from her purse.  
  
"You've got to be kidding. You carry one of those around with you?" TK asked, wide-eyed.  
  
"Yeah, of course." Mimi said mischievously. She poured Kari's drink into the glass and handed it back to her. "Take this, and drink it all at once."  
  
"Mimi, I know what a shot glass is."  
  
"Good, then you won't have any problems chugging it." Mimi said. Kari sighed and looked at TK, who just shrugged. Kari gulped, took the glass to her mouth, and swallowed it. She shut her eyes, and when she opened them they were red.  
  
"Way to go Kar!" Sora cheered playfully.  
  
"How was it?" TK asked.  
  
"It was...Actually, kind of good." Kari answered while she blinked away the surprising taste. "Here, try it." She poured more into the shot glass and handed it to TK. He took it gracefully, and laughed.  
  
"That's some good shit, right there." He chuckled. He took another swig of his Chartreuse, and reached into his pocket and pulled a pack of Marlboro cigarettes. Matt sighed. He wasn't exactly happy with TK drinking or smoking, but he knew there was nothing he could do to stop him from doing it, so he just let it be. Kari sighed lightly as well when TK pulled out the pack. She was worried about him. Not to mention his girlfriend Mindy and her friends weren't the best influences. Kari didn't like her, not only because she was bad influence, and she flirted with the whole school while dating TK, but because she didn't like TK dating. TK was her guy, not some tramp's. She deserved him.  
  
"Hey Tai, come with me for a minute, would you?" Sora asked with a mysterious twinkle in her eye. Tai nodded and Sora led Tai down a hallway.  
  
"You know where those two are going." Matt winked. Kari made a disgusted face and asked TK to dance. He accepted, and so, after taking one more shot each, they went off dancing.  
  
"Matt, you think you could spend the night tonight?" Mimi asked with a naughty look after the two minors left. Matt leaned in and gave Mimi a long, deep kiss.  
  
"I'd like that." Matt said. "I'm sure Tai won't mind. In fact, he'll probably be happy if I switched apartments with Sora." He winked. Mimi chuckled and kissed Matt back.  
  
"Sounds good." She said. "And...I'm sure TK wouldn't mind if Kari stayed with him." Mimi winked back. Matt looked at Mimi with a serious face.  
  
"Mimi, please don't try to get them together that way. There only kids."  
  
"Matt, they're 17. They probably know more about sleeping around then we do." Mimi pointed out. Matt sighed.  
  
"Yeah, I know. It's just...He's still my little brother."  
  
"You've got to let him go some time. He's not going to stay a virgin forever...Especially with that Mindy girl." Matt scoffed at the idea, but knew in the back of his mind Mimi was right.  
  
The gang stayed there a little while longer talking about school, parties, rumors, television, and finished drinking. When they finally left, Kari and TK were clearly drunk, Mimi was a little tipsy, and Tai, Sora, and Matt were on the brink of becoming tipsy. Fortunately, Matt was clear-headed enough to control a car. He drove to Mimi and Sora's apartment first.   
  
"I'd best stay with TK tonight, Mimi, seeing that he's drunk and all. Maybe tomorrow?" he asked as he walked Mimi up to the elevator outside of the apartment building. Tai and Sora weren't far behind.  
  
"Yeah, ok." Mimi said, sounding disappointed.  
  
"Love you." He said as he kissed her.  
  
"Love you too." Mimi said. She waited at the elevator for Sora while Matt walked back to the car. Tai said goodbye to Sora and walked back to the car as well. Matt turned it on and started down the street.  
  
"So...How's Mindy?" Kari asked, clearly drunk.  
  
"She's good. Why...?" TK asked.  
  
"Just wonderin'." She said. She lowered her voice and said to herself, "Makin' sure that bitch is alright." She sighed sharply and stared out the window. TK heard her sigh and looked over at her, and she looked so beautiful at that moment, he had to shut his eyes to keep from jamming his tongue down her throat. He turned away and stared out his own window, and slowly fell asleep followed by Kari falling asleep.   
  
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"Agh..." TK groaned as he woke up.  
  
"Nice to see you're awake." Matt said as he walked by TK's room.  
  
"Oh man...What happened?" TK asked as he sat up and held his head.  
  
"Dude, that's what us teenagers like to call a hangover." Matt said walking back into TK's room. "Here." Matt said as he held out some Aspirin and a cup of water. "It'll help get rid of it. Or at least cope with it." TK took the Aspirin and drank the whole cup of water.  
  
"Listen, I'm going over to Mimi's, and I might be gone for a while. Call me if you need me. Ok?"  
  
"Yeah, whatever." TK groaned.  
  
"Alright. Later." And with that, Matt left the room, grabbed his coat, and left for Mimi's place.  
  
"Geez." TK groaned as he got out of bed. He headed towards the bathroom and grabbed his towel on the way.  
  
'Damn. I look like shit.' TK thought to himself when he looked in the mirror. His hair was plastered all of his face and his eyes were bloodshot. His face was as pale as a light bulb that was never hooked up. He sighed at his sight, and finally stopped looking at himself when he remembered he had the water in the shower running. He undressed, took a cold shower, dried himself up, and changed into clean clothes. He left his dirty clothes lying around the floor of his bedroom as he walked into the kitchen and opened up the fridge.  
  
'Man, we need food. Maybe I'll go out today and take care of it with Kari.' He thought out loud. He closed the fridgerator door and glanced at the phone. He picked it up and called Kari's number.  
  
"Hello?" Tai's voice said.  
  
"Hey, it's TK. Is Kari there?" TK asked as he sat down on the couch and picked up the remote.  
  
"Yeah, she is. Lemme get her. Oh, by the way, how's the hangover?" Tai chuckled.  
  
"Oh, it's just great." TK said sarcastically.  
  
"We're proud of you, man. How many hangovers has it been? 20? 30?" Tai joked.  
  
"Just get Kari, Tai." TK said as he glanced over at his calendar. He noticed something written for today, and got up to see what it said. He groaned at the remembrance of what it was. "Damn it..."  
  
"TK?" Kari's voice asked.  
  
"Oh, hey Kari. How's your head?" He asked as he looked around the apartment for his keys.  
  
"Pretty good. I took some Aspirin last night and chugged a cup of that pink crap. You?"  
  
"I'm horrible. Listen, I called to ask if you wanted to go to the store with me. The house has no food in it, and Mindy's coming over, so..."  
  
"Oh, I don't know TK." Kari said at the thought of helping him shop for Mindy. "Maybe another time..."  
  
"Please, Kari? I can't go alone, not with this headache."  
  
"Fine." Kari sighed. "Just this once."  
  
"Great! I'll pick you up in about fifteen minutes. Ok?"  
  
"Yeah, sure."  
  
"Bye." He said. He hung up the phone and continued looking for his keys, and finally found them in his room. He put his grey hoodie on and walked out the door.  
  
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"So, you're saying that she just left him there?" Kari said between breaths from laughing so hard as she walked into TK's apartment.  
  
"Yes, she did! It was so funny the way he looked. His reputation is going to be ruined for ions." TK said while he put the bags of groceries onto the counter.  
  
"Oh man. That's great." Kari laughed as she fell onto TK's couch.  
  
"Yeah. This has been great, Kari. Thanks for coming. I've almost completely forgotten about my headache." He said as he fell onto the couch next to Kari.  
  
"So...What time is Mindy coming?" Kari asked quietly after a few minutes of silence.  
  
"Um, around 7. Why?"  
  
"Just wondering." Kari said. She stopped talking for a while and took a good glance around TK's apartment. It was pretty clean, for two teenage boys who are never home.  
  
"Kari...Can I ask you a question?" TK said as he broke the continuous silence. "And I want you to be honest."  
  
"Sure TK. Shoot." Kari said.  
  
"Um, what do you think of Mindy?" He asked.  
  
"I..." Kari started. She sighed as stood up from the couch and walked over to the wall, which was actually more of a window, seeing it was entirely of glass. "I don't think she's good news, TK."  
  
"Why would you say that?" TK asked. He got up from the couch and walked up to Kari.  
  
"Because she's just not the greatest person to be with." Kari said, avoiding TK's face by looking out the window. She sighed, and turned to face him. "She flirts with other guys, she smokes pot, she throws her body around like it's a beach ball, TK. She's not the kind of person you want to be with."  
  
"Kari, all of those things are rumors. I'm actually surprised that you'd believe them." TK said, sounding irritated.  
  
"Look, I've seen her flirt with these guys at school. You think I don't notice my own sex when they're flirting?" Kari pointed out, getting aggravated at TK's oblivion.  
  
"No, you look. You don't have the right to tell me who you think my girlfriend is. Got it? Look, if you didn't like her, that's all you have to say. Although, I can't understand why you wouldn't like her. She's the greatest woman I've ever met, and you don't have any right talking about her! Don't you dare say anything like that again! Got it?" TK said while his voice started to get louder.  
  
"Don't you dare order me around, Takeru! You're not with her all the time. You don't hear the gossip she spreads in the lockers, do you? You don't have her in almost every class, do you?" Kari spat right back at him.  
  
"You know what Kari? Why don't you just leave. I don't need you around here when Mindy gets here. Ok? So just get out of here." TK yelled. He walked towards the door and grabbed the doorknob firmly and jerked the door open.  
  
"You know what? Fine, I'll leave. But don't come crying to me when your little girlfriend screws you over." Kari sneered. She left the apartment and went downstairs and got a cab home. TK slammed the door shut and went outside on the balcony of the apartment. He exhaled slowly, trying to get rid of some of his anger. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a cigarette and lit it. After a while of sitting outside and getting time to relax, he calmed down. He had his eyes closed when he heard a knock at his door. He got up and went back inside and opened the door.  
  
"Hey baby!" Mindy squealed. She wrapped her arms around TK's neck and gave him an intense kiss, plenty of tongue involved.  
  
"Hey. Um, c'mon in." TK said tiredly as he opened the door more to let her in.  
  
"What's wrong, baby?" Mindy said in a sweet, yet almost innocent worried voice.  
  
"Nothing. Just...Fell asleep, that's all." He yawned while running a hand through his hair.  
  
"Oh...Ok! Um, so, where's Matt?" Mindy asked after glancing around the room.  
  
"He's staying at his girlfriends' place for the night, which means we have the place all to ourselves." He said with a sly grin on his face as he wrapped his arms around her waist.  
  
"Sounds delicious." Mindy said seductively. She kissed TK again, only this time it lasted a little longer.  
  
"Mm...Wait." TK said in the middle of the kiss. He picked Mindy up and carried her into his room and set her down on his bed. "There." He said. "Much better." Mindy giggled which made TK chuckle. He sighed, and leaned in and kissed her again. He wrapped his arm around her waist while his other hand ran through her hair. Mindy slowly unbuttoned TK's shirt, which was an invitation for him to do the same to her. He started to unbutton her shirt, but stopped and pulled away from her when she ran her hand down to his belt.  
  
"Wait." He said. He sat up and exhaled sharply. He ran his hands through his hair in frustration.  
  
"What is it this time?" Mindy asked, quite aggravated. "It's that Kamiya girl, isn't it? I'm sick of this, TK! I'm sick of it. Every time we're about to get it on, you stop and come up with some lame excuse! You think I don't see the way you look at her? I'm just tired of this. I'm out of here." Mindy sneered. She got up off of TK's bed, buttoned her shirt back up, and left.  
  
"God dammit." TK cursed to himself. He got up out of his bed and buttoned his shirt up. He looked over at the mirror and sighed, but then his anger started to build up again. He looked around the floor for his keys that he left in his jacket and found them on the floor next to his bed. He picked them up and stormed out of his apartment, got into his car, and left.  
  
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Kari was writing in her poetry book when she heard a knock at the door. She got up from the chair and opened the door that led out into the hallway of her apartment building. There, standing in front of her with an angry face, was Takeru Takaishi.  
  
"Kari, what the hell did you say to Mindy?" TK yelled.  
  
"What are you talking about, TK." Kari asked, sounding exhausted. She turned away from him as though she felt it wasn't a big deal and walked back into the apartment.  
  
"I'm talking about why Mindy thinks you have some involvement in our relationship!" TK yelled as he walked into the apartment, slamming the door from behind him.  
  
"TK, I didn't tell her anything. But it could be a way to get you to not believe me when I say she's a bitch!" Kari snapped.   
  
"Who the hell do you think you are calling her that! You're more of bitch than her if you're talking about her the way you do! I've never heard more pitiful rumors in my life!"  
  
"I'm not lying, TK! Ask Yolei! Ask Jimmy! Didn't he date her last year? Ask him! He'll tell you exactly what kind of screwed-up person you've gotten yourself involved with!"   
  
The next five minutes came by as though they were centuries long. TK grinded his teeth in anger, and stopped being rational. His hands balled into fists and with them he swung at Kari's face, definitely NOT missing. He hit the right side of her face, and her head snapped to the left. He brought his fist back, and before he noticed what had just happened, it was too late. Kari dropped her book, and there was no sound coming to TK's mind except for the sound of his breathing and dropping of her book. She closed her eyes and raised her hand to her mouth. When she pulled it away, she opened her eyes and looked at her hand, to find blood. TK's eye went wide and he started to panic.  
  
"Kari...Oh my god...I'm so sorry... I didn't mean..." He started frantically, but stopped when Kari turned her head and looked into his eyes. He looked into her eyes, and saw nothing. Not hate, not anger, not love, not depression, he saw nothing. It was like a black hole. There was nothing in her eyes.  
  
"Kari..." He croaked as his eyes started to fill with tears. He extended his hand out and tried to touch her arm, but she pulled away and her eyes filled back up with something he wasn't expecting. Her eyes were full of fear.  
  
"Don't touch me..." She said uneasily as she backed away from him.  
  
"Kari, please, just let me-" TK cried.  
  
"No, get away from me! Leave me alone!" She cried. She fell to her knees and held herself as she rocked back in forth in agony. Her tears started to flow freely, as well as a line of blood from her mouth.  
  
"Kari..." TK tried to say as a lump started to form in the back of his throat.  
  
"Just go away, Takeru. Just go away..." Kari cried as she covered her ears with her hands. TK just backed away from her, turned, and ran out the door. 


	2. Problems Stay Hidden

After TK ran out, Kari crawled over to the phone and picked it up. She dialed a number, and waited for an answer.  
  
"Hello?" Yolei's voice said over the line.  
  
"Yolei...I...I need..." Kari sobbed.  
  
"Kari? What's wrong?" Yolei asked worriedly.  
  
"Yolei...I need you to come over. Please." Kari pleaded as her tears ran down her face.  
  
"Sure, Kari. I'll be there in a few minutes. Just hang tight." Yolei said.  
  
"Ok." Kari sniffed. She hung up the phone and stood up from off the floor, then walked over to the kitchen and picked up a cloth and brought it to her mouth to soak up the blood. After she got most of the blood off, she put the cloth in the laundry hamper and walked into the living room and sat down on the couch to wait for Yolei. Her thoughts were full of questions, and they were full of nothing. She was confused. Why would TK do this? Was that really HER TK? He always protected her from anything that might harm her, and then he goes and does something like this which makes her think: did he mean it all? Did he mean to save her? Did he mean to hit her? Did he know that he terrified her beyond comprehension? She didn't know what he thought, nor did she care. He hit her, and now she didn't know if she could trust him ever again. Kari glanced to the right of her and looked out the sliding glass door that led to the balcony, and saw it was raining. She got up off the couch and went onto the balcony to hear the calming sounds of the drops of rain splashing into puddles formed by the rain before it. Kari closed her eyes and let the rain take control of all her thoughts. After a while she heard the door open, and figured it was Yolei so she went inside. But it was Tai instead. As Kari saw Tai, her fear returned and she tried to get to her room without him seeing her, but that just didn't happen.  
  
"Hey Kari." Tai said as he saw Kari heading towards her room.  
  
"Uh, h-hi..." Kari said hesitantly.  
  
"Kari, you ok?" Tai asked worriedly as he walked towards her.  
  
"I'm fine, just don't come any closer." Kari said as she backed up from him, terrified.  
  
"Kari, what's wrong? What happened?" He asked as he stopped walking towards her.  
  
"Nothing, just leave me alone!" Kari yelled as tears started to fall from her face.  
  
"Oh Kari..." Tai sighed as he walked to her to try to comfort her. Kari jerked away from him and ran into her room. Tai followed her and tried to talk to her through her closed door.  
  
"Kari, come out." Tai said through the door.  
  
"No." Kari's voice said.  
  
"Kari, what happened?"  
  
"I don't want to talk about it, ok? Just leave me alone." Kari cried. Just then there was a knock at the door. Tai glanced at the front door and back at Kari's door, and sighed.  
  
"Kari, I'm going to go answer the door, ok? I'll be right back." He said. He walked away from Kari's room and answered the door.  
  
"Oh, hey Yolei." Tai sighed.  
  
"Nice to see you too, Tai." Yolei said sarcastically.  
  
"Sorry. It's not you, it's Kari. She won't talk to me." Tai said. He let Yolei in and closed the door. Yolei hung up her coat and walked to Kari's room and knocked on the door.  
  
"Kari? It's me, Yolei. Can I come in?" Yolei asked cautiously through the door. There was silence from the other side for a while until Kari's room door opened and Yolei came inside. Kari turned and walked away from her door to sit on her bed. Yolei closed Kari's door and sat down next to Kari.  
  
"So...What happened?" Yolei asked. Kari turned her head away from Yolei and looked at the floor.  
  
"TK...Hit me." Kari whispered.  
  
"He what?!" Yolei gasped.  
  
"He...Hit me." Kari said quietly.  
  
"What? Why?" Yolei asked.  
  
"I don't know." Kari whispered. She stood up and walked over to the window and stared out into the rain. "He just came over, said something about Mindy, and then he hit me. It went by so fast."  
  
"But that doesn't make any sense." Yolei said, puzzled about TK's actions.  
  
"Tell that to TK." Kari cried.  
  
"Oh Kari." Yolei sighed. She got up and walked to Kari and held her while Kari cried on her shoulder. "This isn't your fault. It's TK's. You just need to relax for a while. Take a deep breath." Yolei instructed. Kari sighed and took a deep breath as Yolei said to do, and exhaled slowly.  
  
"See? Don't you feel better?" Yolei said, trying to cheer Kari up.  
  
"A little." Kari whimpered.  
  
"Good." Yolei said. "Um, Kari, if I may ask, why won't you talk to Tai?"  
  
"Because he wants to hit me." Kari whispered.  
  
"Why would you think that?" Yolei laughed.  
  
"I could just tell." Kari whispered. "It's what they do. They hit us. They lie to us, and make us think they love us, then they hit us."  
  
"Who's they?" Yolei asked.  
  
"Men." Kari replied.  
  
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"Look man, you know I don't do the heavy stuff." Davis said after his friend Jake offered him a hit of Acid.  
  
"Aw, c'mon, man. Weed don't get you high, it just gets you alive a little. You gotta try it." Jake said. He took another puff of his joint, then held out towards Davis a small, square paper. "Just try it. One won't kill ya."  
  
"I don't think so, man. I'm not much of an LSD kinda guy." Davis joked. He took a last smoke out of his joint and tossed it on the floor of Jake's basement.  
  
"Alright, your loss." Jake shrugged. He tossed the acid into his mouth and let it dissolve. Davis chuckled.  
  
"What?" Jake asked.  
  
"Nothin' man. You know, that stuff is gonna kill you. I heard it's worse than Crystal Meth, and you remember when that dealer got shot because one of his customers died from one hit of Crystal Meth. It's a dangerous drug, man. You shouldn't be messin' with it."  
  
"Yeah, yeah. What about you and your bipping stage? Cocaine ain't a safe thing either."  
  
"They're totally different drugs, Jake." Davis said. He got up off of Jake's couch and went over to the fridge and pulled out two cans of Bud Light. He picked his head up out of the fridge and chuckled.  
  
"Dude, why you got light in here?" He asked Jake.  
  
"Hey man, it ain't my fault. My girl won't get me anything else." Jake said.  
  
"That sucks." Davis said. He walked over to the couch and sat back down. He tossed Jake a can of Bud light, and opened up his own. Jake stared at Davis for a minute and groaned.  
  
"C'mon man, it ain't no fun to go on a trip without a buddy. Please, just try one tab." Jake pleaded. Davis sighed and rolled his eyes.  
  
"Fine, I'll try it. But after this I'm not going on another trip wit' you, ok?"  
  
"I'll agree to that." Jake said with a grin. He reached under his chair and pulled out a bag. He opened the bag and pulled out a hit of acid, and handed it to Davis. Davis stared at it for a moment, shrugged, and popped it in his mouth. Jake grinned deviously.  
  
"This is going to be the time of your life."  
  
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TK ran out of Kari's apartment and got into his car and drove away. He didn't really drive to anywhere in particular, but he didn't really care. He just needed to get out of there. He drove around for a while, contemplating his thoughts, when he found himself driving down a street well known for it's drug dealers and prostitutes. TK stopped thinking about everything he knew, about everything that was bothering him, about Kari. He stopped thinking period. He pulled up to one of the corners, and was greeted by one of the hookers on the street. She leaned in, did a little talking with TK, and got into the passenger side of the car. TK closed his eyes as the girl got into the car, exhaled slowly, opened his eyes, and drove off to a cheap hotel down the street. He got out of the car, got a room, and went upstairs with the girl right behind him. TK put his card into the door, and opened it slowly. The girl told TK that she was going to go change in the bathroom, so TK was left alone for a while in the room. He sighed and ran his hands across his face. He knew he shouldn't be doing this, he knew it was going to hurt him later, he knew it was dangerous, but he didn't care. He had to let go of everything for a while. Or at least that's what he thought at first. The girl came out the bathroom with nothing on but a skimpy little lingerie outfit. She smiled.  
  
"Have you ever done this before?" She asked.  
  
"Uh, no, I haven't." TK answered.  
  
"Well, you'll enjoy it." She said. She walked over to TK who was sitting on the edge of the bed and pushed TK onto his back. She slowly went down and kissed him, and TK returned the kiss. As the girl slowly unbuttoned TK's shirt, TK pushed her off of him and to the side of the bed.  
  
"Look, I'm sorry, but I can't do this." TK said. He got off of the bed and picked up his stuff, left the girl a $50, and left the hotel. He got into his car and drove home. When he entered the apartment, he found his older brother asleep on the couch with the TV on. TK shut the TV off and went into his room and fell onto his bed and started to sob. He eventually cried himself to sleep.  
  
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"What are we going to do about Kari." Tai said quietly to the gang. It was the next night, and everybody but TK and Yolei were in Tai's living room. Nobody told TK about the meeting because he was the one that caused it, and Yolei was in Kari's room, trying to get her to come out.  
  
"Tai, this isn't something you should take lightly. Kari was punched in the face by her best friend. That's not something that's easily coped with." Sora explained.  
  
"I know that, Sora. I'm not saying we should throw it aside, I'm saying we need to show Kari that she can trust us." Tai said. He glanced at Matt, then looked away. "Well, most of us."  
  
"That's not fair, Tai." Matt said sternly.  
  
"No, Matt, what's not fair is that your brother had to take his anger out on my sister's face!" Tai yelled as he jumped out of his seat.  
  
"This probably isn't all his fault, Tai! Did you ever think Kari might have ACTUALLY had something to do with it?" Matt snapped as he got out of his seat as well to meet Tai.  
  
"Are you trying to tell me that it's my sister's fault that her best friend punched her?!" Tai roared.  
  
"Maybe I am!" Matt yelled.  
  
"Guys, stop it! You think all this yelling is going to help our situation here? No, so stop yelling before it gets worse!" Davis said. Tai and Matt sighed, said their apologies, and sat back down. Just then Yolei came out of the room and walked into the living room.  
  
"Well? What'd she say?" Izzy asked.  
  
"She said she'll only see Davis. At least, out of the guys." Yolei said. Everybody turned and faced Davis, looking for an answer as to why Kari would only see him. He just shrugged and got up from the couch and walked into Kari's room.  
  
"Kari?" Davis asked as he walked into the room. It was practically pitch black, so he couldn't really see where Kari was.  
  
"I'm on my bed, Davis." Kari said. "Moved your hand to the left a little bit. There's a switch there that's for the light." She said. Davis moved his hand to the left, as Kari instructed, and found the switch. He turned it on, and had to close his eyes for a minute before they adjusted to the light. When he did finally open his eyes, he found Kari sitting on the bed, as she said.  
  
"Hey Kari." Davis said. "How you feeling?" He asked kindly.  
  
"I'm feeling ok." She said blankly. Davis sat down next to her and fixed his eyes on her.  
  
"Kari, why won't you see Tai?" He asked cautiously.  
  
"Because he wants to hurt me." Kari said.  
  
"No, he doesn't. Nobody wants to hurt you, Kari. TK made a mistake, but that was his mistake only. You shouldn't punish Tai and the others because TK was a jerk." Davis said. He really didn't think TK was a jerk, but punching Kari made him think a little differently about his friendship with the blonde-haired boy.  
  
"I know. I...I'm trying, I really am, but I..I can't stop thinking about it." Kari stuttered. She turned her head and faced Davis, and finally let her tears fall. Davis held his arms out for her, and she took the welcome graciously. She cried into his chest for a while, while he stroked her hair saying everything was alright. Kari stopped crying after a while, but didn't leave Davis's comforting arms. Davis cleared his throat, and asked Kari something.  
  
"Uh, Kari, please don't take this the wrong way, but out of everybody that you were afraid of, why did you choose me as the person you could trust?" Kari picked her head up and looked into Davis's eyes.  
  
"I've known you for five years, Davis, and out of all of those years, you haven't once hurt me in any way. You've always understood me and where I was coming from, and you never questioned me. You just gave your opinion. I've never really known anyone that I could trust better, excluding TK. You've given me all of you, and in turn I gave you my trust." She finished. Davis blushed a little, and let a small smile come across his face.  
  
"Thanks, Kari. Trust isn't something that you can give away easily, and I'm very grateful that you decided to let me have it." He said truthfully. He wrapped his arms around Kari and brought her into a gentle hug, and she did the same. She pulled away for a second and looked at Davis.  
  
"You really do mean a lot to me, Davis. I'm very lucky to have you here." She said.  
  
"Right back at ya." Davis said in a relaxed manner. Kari chuckled a little and hugged Davis again. This time, Davis pulled away.  
  
"Kari, do you think you could see everybody now? They're really worried about you." Davis said. Kari sighed and looked at him for direction.  
  
"Do you really think I can?"  
  
"Yes, I do. You're very strong, Kari. I know you can do this." Davis said. Kari smiled at Davis's kind words, and nodded. Davis got up from Kari's bed and helped pull Kari up off her bed, took her hand in his, opened her door, and led her into the living room, to regain the feeling of living. 


	3. Houston, We Have A Problem

By the time Matt got home that night, it was around 1am. They had accomplished a lot with Kari. She would at least stay in a room with them. How she could so easily talk to Davis and not Tai was beyond what Matt could figure out, but then again, he doesn't know the whole situation. Matt unlocked his apartment door and walked in. All the lights were off, so Matt couldn't see well. He stumbled around a little until he found the light switch and turned it on. Waiting for him on the couch, was TK.  
  
"Where were you?" TK questioned him.  
  
"I was...Out. Why?" Matt said, trying to avoid having to tell TK about the meeting.  
  
"Because I couldn't get a hold of you, or Izzy, or Mimi, or anybody else. Was something going on that I should know about?"  
  
"Nope, nothing at all. Must've been a coincidence that everybody was out." Matt said swiftly. "If that's all," He started as he took his shoes and jacket off, "I'll be going to bed." And with that he headed out of the living room and into his room.  
  
"I know you were all at Tai's place." TK said as Matt left the room. Matt stopped walking and turned around to face TK.  
  
"And you would know that, how?" Matt asked.  
  
"I just know. It's not that hard to figure out." TK said.  
  
"Alright, so maybe I was at Tai's house. But I wouldn't have had to go there if you hadn't hit Kari." Matt said as he crossed his arms.  
  
"Matt, nobody's hearing me out! I have a good reason for what I did." TK said, aggravated.  
  
"Well, let's hear it then." Matt said, waiting for a good explanation.  
  
"Kari told Mindy something which made her think I wouldn't sleep with her because I was too 'in love' with Kari." TK scoffed.  
  
"Ok, first off, you are in love with Kari. Second-"  
  
"What the hell do you mean, I'm in love with Kari?" TK interrupted.  
  
"It's true, TK. You've loved her ever since you met her. And don't deny it, 'cause the whole gang can back me up on this." Matt said. TK just scoffed in disbelief, even though he really did know that he felt that way about her.  
  
"And, second off, you don't even know what Kari said to Mindy, do you? Do you even know if she said anything at all?" Matt asked.  
  
"Well, not exactly, but I-"  
  
"TK, this is ridiculous. You know what you did wasn't rational, so I don't need to explain it to you. I'm going to bed. Good night." Matt yawned. He continued walking to his room and shut the door.  
  
"Psh. Love Kari, yeah, right." TK said to himself out loud. He tried to laugh the idea away, but it didn't work. He sighed and walked into his room and fell onto the bed on his back. He stared at the ceiling for a while, thinking about everything in the past couple days that he regretted. He looked over his shoulder at the picture of him and Kari at last years dance.  
  
'Wow. We look so happy together.' He thought. He picked the picture up off his desk and stared at Kari's face for a while. He smiled at the sight of her smile. 'Man. I really do love her.' He thought. He exhaled slowly, and laid back down with the picture still in his hand, and fell asleep that way.  
  
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"Ah, god. Not another one." Mimi groaned. She got up out of bed and went into the kitchen and pulled out a bottle of Aspirin, took out two pills, and swallowed them without any liquid. Shortly after she took the Aspirin, Sora came slumping in wearing a long shirt and a bath robe.  
  
"Hey, I didn't hear you come in last night. I thought you were staying at Tai's place." Mimi said.  
  
"Yeah, I was," Sora yawned, "But Tai didn't feel good about it, with Kari like she is and all."  
  
"Yeah, I understand that." Mimi said. She laid down on the couch and put a pillow over her head and groaned.  
  
"What's wrong?" Sora asked.  
  
"Ah...Last night before I came home I went out for a while." Mimi's muffled voice said through the pillow.  
  
"Heh...You mean you got drunk again?" Sora chuckled.  
  
"Ha ha. But yes, I did." Mimi groaned.  
  
"Meems, you need to get a hold of this drinking habit." Sora said as she sat down on the chair that faced the couch.  
  
"I know, I know." Mimi said as she pulled the pillow away from her face. "But I'm not the only one with problems in this place."  
  
"What are you talking about?" Sora asked.  
  
"I'm talking about you and your need to sleep with Tai. You're practically a nymphomaniac."  
  
"Well that's kind of mean to say, Mimi." Sora said crossly. "I know you like to sleep with Matt."  
  
"Yes, but I could last months without sex. You, on the other hand, need it all the time." Mimi pointed out. Sora scoffed and refused to believe Mimi.  
  
"Fine, don't believe me." Mimi shrugged. She got up off the couch and walked into her room to change. Sora put the thought in the back of her head and turned the TV on to keep her from thinking about it.  
  
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"Yo, Jake, how's it going?" Davis said as he walked up to his friend. He gave him a pat on the back and called the bartender over and ordered a beer.  
  
"So...How'd you like the trip?" Jake asked mysteriously.  
  
"Actually...It was awesome!" Davis said with a grin.  
  
"I knew you would think so." Jake said simply.  
  
"So..." Davis started as he picked up his beer, "You think you could get me another hit?"  
  
"For you man, I could get you anything. Come by later, I'll have one for ya."  
  
"Thanks." Davis said.  
  
"I'll see you later then?" Jake asked.  
  
"Yeah. Later." Davis said. And with that, Jake walked away. Davis stayed at the club for a while, talking to friends that the Digidestined gang never met, getting lap dances that his friends paid for, and just letting loose. Before he knew it, it was already 4pm. He remembered about the acid Jake was getting him, and he left the club and headed towards Jake's place. Jake lived in a two-story house with a three other college guys, and was kind of the different one. The other three were into the fraternity parties and stuff, Jake was more of a rave kind of guy. Davis walked up to the house and went to the side of it. There was a door there that led into the basement, which was where Jake always hung out. He opened the door, and walked inside to find a smoke-filled basement with Jake sitting on the couch, smoking a joint.  
  
"Hey Davis." Jake said, followed by a cough. He motioned for Davis to sit down, and he did. Jake put his arm to the side of the couch, and went he brought his hand back, he had a cube in his hand. He gave it to Davis, who popped it in his mouth. Jake reached next to the couch again, and pulled out another cube for himself.  
  
"Never any fun to go on a trip by yourself." He said. Davis grinned. Jake put the cube in his mouth, pushed his hair out of his face, stood up, and looked towards the door.  
  
"What do you say we go out to the park for a while, eh?" He asked Davis.  
  
"Sounds good." Davis said as he jumped up off the couch. Jake went up the stairs, followed by Davis. They decided to not take the car, they could total it while on a high. So they walked down the street, waited for the bus, and took it to the park. By the time they got there, the acid had gotten to their heads and they were running around like maniacs.  
  
"Hey Jake, I think the trees are melting." Davis said as he stared at the trees while swaying back and forth. He eventually fell down.  
  
"Ah man, you are crazy." Jake chuckled. "C'mon, get up." He said. But Davis didn't move.   
  
"Hey, Davis, joke's over. Get up." Jake said worriedly. Davis still didn't move. Jake turned Davis over, and listened for his breath, and didn't hear anything.  
  
"Aw man..." Jake said frantically. He reached into his pocket and pulled out his cell phone, and somehow dialed 911 correctly.  
  
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"Hey Kari." Tai said slowly as he walked into the living room. Even though Kari scooted over on the couch farther away from him, Tai knew she was trying hard to stay in the room.   
  
"Uh, do you want a soda or something?" He asked kindly.  
  
"Um, yeah, that'd be nice." Kari said softly. Tai opened up the fridge and grabbed a couple of sodas, and walked into the living room and sat down on the apposite side of Kari on the couch, and handed her a soda. She took it cautiously, opened it, took a sip, and continued on with her TV watching. Tai watched TV with his sister for a while until the phone rang.  
  
"I'll get it." Tai said when both him and his sister started to get up off the couch to answer the phone. He picked up the phone, and found some kid on the other line.  
  
"Hello? Yeah, she is, hold on. Oh, who's this? Um, ok." Tai said over the phone. He turned his head to Kari and had a worried look on his face.  
  
"Who is it, Tai?" Kari asked.  
  
"It's some kid named Jake. He said he's a friend of Davis's and needs to talk to you. He sounds kind of scared." Tai said. Kari put on a look of curiosity and got up from the couch and took the phone from Tai.  
  
"Hello? Yes, who's this? Yeah, I am, why, what's wrong?" Kari asked. All of a sudden her eyes went wide and her mouth dropped open. "Oh my god. Yeah, I'll be there. Yeah, ok. Bye." She said. She hung up the phone and looked at Tai with eyes full of fear.   
  
"Davis is in the hospital." Kari said. "We need to go."  
  
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"What happened?" Kari asked frantically to Jake as she ran up to him in the waiting room with Tai not far behind.  
  
"He was on an acid trip and he-"  
  
"What the hell do you mean 'he was on an acid trip'? Davis doesn't do drugs." Kari said.  
  
"Actually...He does. He's been doing a couple of different ones with our crew." Jake said, embarrassed.  
  
"Oh my god." Kari said as she sat down from the shock. "What kind of drugs was he taking?"  
  
"Um...He snorted coke every once and a while, he smoked pot, and he's tried acid twice."  
  
"And you didn't stop him?!" Kari screamed. "Now because of your idiocy, he could die! Is that what you were trying to accomplish?! Is it?!" She screamed into his face. After she finished screaming and looked into his eyes, she broke apart into tears. Even though she didn't know him, she cried into Jake's shoulder until the doctor interrupted.  
  
"Are you three friends of a Davis Motomiya?" He asked.  
  
"Yes. How is he?" Kari sniffed.  
  
"He's...He's in critical condition. He suffered from a mild stroke." The doctor said. Kari's tears returned and she let out a small cry. Tai put his hands on Kari's shoulders to comfort her.  
  
"Is he going to be ok?" Tai asked.  
  
"Right now, I might as well flip a coin. We found significant amounts of drugs and alcohol in blood, and right now we're running it through a machine that cleans the blood out. It could take a while, and we don't know if he'll survive."  
  
"What? Why?" Kari asked worriedly.  
  
"He's...He fell into a coma. We don't how long he'll be that way."  
  
"Oh my god." Kari croaked. She covered her mouth to keep from crying. "Isn't there some way you can help get him back?"  
  
"I'm sorry. It's out of our hands right now." The doctor said slowly. "Do you have a way of contacting his family?"  
  
"Yes." Kari whispered. "I'll call them now." She said.  
  
"No, I'll do it, Kari. You need some rest." Tai said. Kari just nodded lightly and sat down on one of the chairs and laid down sideways, resting her head on Jake's lap as if he were an old friend. Tai left the waiting room and called Davis's family along with the rest of the gang. Only TK, Matt, Yolei, Ken, and Izzy could come over, and everybody else said they would come over tomorrow. By the time everybody got there, Kari and Jake were fast asleep. Tai filled everybody in on the situation, and they occupied themselves with cards while they waited for Davis to wake up from his coma. Around 1am Ken, Yolei, and Jun fell asleep while Tai and Izzy entertained themselves outside on the roof and Matt and TK went to the cafeteria to find something to eat.  
  
"So...How'd Kari take the news when she first heard?" Izzy asked Tai on the roof of the hospital while he wrapped himself up tightly in his jacket to keep warm.  
  
"Not well. I've never seen her this way when it involves Davis. If I didn't know her as well as I do, I'd think that Davis was her boyfriend."  
  
"I'm not that surprised Kari acted that way." Izzy said as he looked around at the view.  
  
"What do you mean?" Tai asked.  
  
"Well, Kari's one to love everybody, even Davis." Izzy pointed out. "And after they were in that play together, they just seem to get along so great. It wouldn't surprise me if they were dating and not telling us."  
  
"I never thought about it. I always thought TK would be the one for her."  
  
"Hey, I'm not saying that they're dating and all, Tai. For all I know, they could just be friends." Izzy said.  
  
"Yeah, maybe you're right." Tai said. Just then his cell phone rang.  
  
"Hello? He is? Yeah, we'll be right down. Bye." Tai said over the phone. He hung up, and looked Izzy who had curious eyes on.  
  
"Davis is awake." Tai explained.  
  
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"Kari, do you want to go see him now?" Jun asked her brother's friend. Kari nodded slowly and walked towards the room that Davis was staying in. She opened the door slowly, and saw Davis laying down with his eyes closed. She closed the door slowly and walked lightly towards his bed. Davis smelled the air and smiled.  
  
"Is that Kari?" He asked, his eyes still closed.  
  
"Yeah." Kari whispered. "How'd you know?" Davis opened his eyes and looked into Kari's eyes.  
  
"I smelled your perfume. You always wear the same kind." He said like it was a well-known fact. Kari smiled and chuckled a little while her tears rolled down her face.  
  
"You scared me to death, Davis." She whimpered.  
  
"I'm sorry." He said from the heart. He reached his hand up and wiped away Kari's tears. "I didn't mean to."  
  
"Don't ever do something like that again, Davis Motomiya." Kari scolded.  
  
"I won't. I promise." He said sincerely. "Thank you for being here, Kari."  
  
"You're welcome." Kari whispered with a smile. "Davis...Don't ever leave me." Kari said as her tears returned.  
  
"I can't control that, Kari. But what I can do is take away some of the risks." He said. Kari chuckled, and did something that nobody that would ever happen. She leaned down and kissed Davis. Davis didn't expect it, and neither did TK who happened to be looking in the window at the time. 


	4. Problem Solved

"Oh Damn." TK said to himself when he saw his love place her lips on someone else's. He closed his eyes in agony and turned away from the window. He looked around and noticed no one was watching him, so he took that opportunity to leave without questioning. Shortly after he left, Kari walked out of the room and looked around for Tai until she found him talking to Matt.  
  
"Hey Kari." Matt said as she walked up to the side of Tai. Tai turned to see who he was talking to and found his sister standing there.  
  
"How is he?" Tai asked quietly.  
  
"He's ok." Kari sighed in relief. Tai made a small smile and wrapped his arm around his sister's shoulder.  
  
"I'm going to go say hi to Davis, and then I'm thinking we should leave. What do you think?" Tai asked his sister.  
  
"That sounds good." Kari replied. Tai nodded and left his sister and best friend alone to go see Davis.  
  
"So...Where's TK." Kari asked uncomfortably.  
  
"He should be around here somewhere." Matt replied as he glanced around, curious to where TK was.  
  
"Oh." Kari said quietly.  
  
"Listen, Kari..." Matt started with a sigh, "I know TK hurt you, but I think you should talk to him. I think he's taking it even harder than you are. It's not easy to figure out why you would hit your best friend."  
  
"I...I just can't Matt." Kari sighed. She looked into Matt's eyes, and knew there was nothing she could do. She hurt Matt by hurting TK. "I'm sorry Matt." She turned to walk away, but Matt took her by the arm.  
  
"No, Kari, I'm sorry. I didn't think about how this affected you. I'm sorry." He said sincerely. Kari gave him a small smile, and in return Matt held his arms out which Kari took graciously. When she released Matt's hug, Tai was there waiting for her.  
  
"Davis is in pretty good shape, considering he was just in a coma." He joked.  
  
"Yeah." Kari chuckled lightly.  
  
"So...Ready to go?" Tai asked as he wrapped his arms around his sister and rested his head on her shoulder.  
  
"Yeah." She sighed. "Let's go home."  
  
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After TK left the hospital he returned home. He didn't really have anywhere to go to, and if he stayed at the hospital he would've gone insane. So he went home. He opened his door to find all but one light off.  
  
'Hmm...That's weird, I thought I shut them all off.' He thought. He walked into the room that the light was on, and found an unsuspecting guest sitting on the couch.  
  
"Who's there?" TK asked cautiously. He walked slowly to the couch until he heard a reply.  
  
"I was waiting for you." Mindy's voice said from behind the couch. TK let out a relieving sigh and walked to the front of the couch.  
  
"Mindy, what are you doing here?" TK sighed.  
  
"I came to tell you that I want out." Mindy said sharply.  
  
"Out? Out of what?" TK asked.  
  
"TK, I want out of our relationship." Mindy sighed.  
  
"What? Why?" TK asked, puzzled.  
  
"You should know why! You and that Kamiya girl! I see the way you look at her, the way you smile when she laughs; it's obvious that you love that girl! And I'm not going to stand around here and watch my boyfriend drool over someone else! Goodbye!" Mindy said with huff. She walked away from TK and stopped at the front door and turned around to look at TK.  
  
"And by the way, Kisho was a way better lover than you were." She snapped. And with that she turned on her heel and left. TK just stood there, still absorbing what just happened.  
  
"She cheated on me?" TK said to himself out loud. He turned away from the door and fell onto the couch, his eyes still wide from shock.  
  
"How did this happen?" He whispered to himself.  
  
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Davis stayed at the hospital for three more days until they let him go home. He was restricted from doing any physical activity, so he was pretty much put on house arrest. Someone always came over every day to see how he was doing, or to give a lecture on the effects of drugs. Surprisingly though, he received some good welcome home gifts to put him back in a good mood. When he first left the hospital he was in a deep depression, and seeing how much his friends cared about him made him feel a whole lot better.   
  
Kari was contemplating on whether she should go visit Davis or not, considering the last time she saw him she wound up kissing him. Kari was cleaning the kitchen and arguing with herself when Tai walked in.  
  
"Uh, Kari, what are you doing?" Tai chuckled as he let his eyes follow his sister back in forth through the kitchen.  
  
"Huh? What?" Kari said as she stopped and noticed Tai's presence.  
  
"You were pacing back and forth and talking to yourself." Tai explained.  
  
"What? Oh, yeah." Kari said. She ran her hand through her hair and groaned. "Tai, should I go see Davis?" She asked him.  
  
"Why not?" Tai asked as he reached into the fruit bowl and pulled out an apple.  
  
"Well...If I tell you something you have to promise you won't tell anyone, ok?" Kari sighed. Tai nodded in agreement, because he couldn't talk with a mouth full of fruit.  
  
"Ok. I kissed Davis." She sighed.  
  
"You what?!" Tai said as he spit out the apple in his mouth.  
  
"I know, I know. I don't even know why. He was just so...Beautiful and gentle and kind and I...I just couldn't stop myself."  
  
"Kari..." Tai sighed. "Wait, first hand me a cloth." He said after he noticed the mess he made. Kari handed him a cloth and he wiped his mouth first, and then started to clean off the counter.  
  
"Ok, as I was saying...I think you should see him. He's probably just as confused as you are, only...More." Tai said in confusion of his own words.  
  
"Maybe you're right." Kari sighed. "I'm going to go see him now. I'll be back later." She said as she pulled her apron off.  
  
"Goo wuck." Tai said with a mouth full of apple. "Oh, an' couwld you pick wup a pack of cigs fowr me?"  
  
"Sure Twai." Kari joked. She grabbed her keys and left the apartment. As she drove away from her apartment, TK drove towards it. He parked his car in the front of the building and headed up the stairs towards Kari's apartment. He stood in front of door, took a heavy sigh, and knocked. As it opened he started to talk frantically, not even bothering to see who was there.  
  
"Look Kari I know I hurt you and I'm sorry you have to forgive I didn't mean to hurt you I was just mad and-"  
  
"Whoa, whoa. Hold it right there partner. Kari's not here." Tai said.  
  
"What?" TK said, puzzled when he heard Tai's voice. "Oh, sorry Tai." he sighed.  
  
"It's ok. C'mon in. Kari just left for Davis's place, and I don't know when she'll be back, but I want to talk to you. It's time I gave you a little lesson about physical contact." Tai said with an evil grin as he closed the door.  
  
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"Hey Kari, C'mon in." Jun said when she opened the door. Kari followed her in and Jun motioned for Kari to put her coat on the rack. Kari did so, and sat down on one of the kitchen chairs while she watched Jun look for her missing shoe.  
  
"Um, Jun, is Davis home?" Kari asked.  
  
"Yeah, he's in his room." Jun said from under a couch cushion. She pulled her head out and sighed. "Oh, but knock first, 'cause he might not be dressed."  
  
"Ok." Kari said as she blushed from Jun's warning. She walked towards Davis's room and knocked on his door.  
  
"Yeah?" Davis's voice said through the closed door that was covered from top to bottom with caution signs. Kari chuckled to herself as she noticed that the signs really meant what they said. Davis's room was known to be quite messy at times.  
  
"Davis, it's me. Kari. Can I come in?" She asked through the door.  
  
"Yeah, c'mon in." Davis said. Kari opened the door to find a surprisingly clean room. Her eyes went wide as she noticed that he really DID have carpet in here.  
  
"Quite a catch isn't it." Davis chuckled when he noticed Kari's eyes when she saw his clean room.  
  
"What? Oh, I guess." Kari said as she came back to the living. She turned around to find Davis sitting on his bed in khaki cargos and nothing else. Kari blushed at the sight of a bare-chested Davis.  
  
"I'm glad you came." Davis said quietly. "I was worried that you were mad at me."  
  
"Why would I be mad at you?" Kari asked.  
  
"Well, for starters, I'm almost killed myself because of drugs."  
  
"I'm not mad at you because of that." Kari sighed kindly. She sat down next to Davis on the bed and tried to look into his eyes, but he turned away.  
  
"So you are mad at me." Davis said quietly.  
  
"What? No, no, I'm not mad at you at all." Kari said. She put a hand on Davis' shoulder and he turned back around and looked at Kari's face.  
  
"Then why were you avoiding to see me?" He asked quietly.  
  
"I was worried about what you thought of what happened at the hospital." Kari replied.  
  
"Yeah, I was wondering about that. What was it about, anyway?"  
  
"I'm not exactly sure. I guess I just felt..." Kari started. She sighed and looked Davis in the eyes. "I think I'm in love with you."  
  
"Whoa, whoa. That's a strong word, there." Davis said uncomfortably.  
  
"I know, but I think it's what I feel. I really do." Kari said.  
  
"Kari..." Davis sighed. He took Kari's hands in his and looked at her. "You don't love me, and you know it."  
  
"But-"  
  
"Kari, you know you don't love me. Why would you think you did?" Davis asked.  
  
"But I do love-"  
  
"Kari..." Davis said exasperatingly. Kari sighed in defeat.  
  
"Ok, ok. I'm listening."  
  
"Thank you." Davis sighed in relief. "You know you don't love me. I know you don't love me. I know who you love, and I know that you know it too." Kari looked away when Davis made that comment. Davis put his hand on Kari's shoulder for comfort.  
  
"You need to forgive him." Davis whispered.  
  
"I can't, Davis. I can't." Kari croaked as her tears started to fall.  
  
"Yes you can." Davis reassured.  
  
"How? How do you forgive someone for doing what he did to me?" Kari cried.  
  
"You just do, Kari. You have to let it go. Take a deep breath, and when you let it all out, try to get out your anger." Davis instructed.  
  
"You sound like a yoga teacher." Kari chuckled.  
  
"Well, I try." Davis joked. Kari laughed, and took a deep sigh.  
  
"I guess you're right." She sniffed.  
  
"Atta girl." Davis cheered lightly. He wiped Kari's tears away and kissed her forehead.  
  
"Now, I think you've someplace to be." He said.  
  
"Yeah. Oh, but I have to bring something to Tai first. But don't worry, I promise I'll see him today." Kari reassured.  
  
"Ok. Thanks for coming over Kari." Davis said.  
  
"No problem Davis." Kari said with a smile. Davis got up off the bed and helped Kari up, and showed her to the door.  
  
"Remember, just breath." Davis said.  
  
"Don't worry," Kari chuckled. "I won't." Davis gave her a goodbye hug and Kari left his place. She stopped by the drug store and picked up that pack of cigarettes for Tai and continued home. After she parked her car, she took the stairs up to her apartment. The door was locked, so she shuffled around in her purse for keys and finally found them. She unlocked the door and entered her apartment to find lights shut off and candles lit all over the place.  
  
"Tai?" Kari asked as she hung her purse up and put her keys down on the table next to the door. She walked into the living room and looked around for Tai, but found someone else instead.  
  
"TK..." Kari whispered in fear. She started to back away from him.  
  
"Kari, please. Let me explain myself." TK pleaded.  
  
"Go away." Kari cried. She walked towards the door and looked out. It seemed like every time her and TK got together it rained.  
  
"Kari...I'm so sorry." TK whispered.  
  
"Why couldn't you just leave alone?! Why'd you have to come here?!" Kari yelled. She held her head in agony and fell to her knees in tears.  
  
"I'm sorry Kari. I'm so sorry." TK sobbed. He wrapped her arms around Kari to comfort her, and surprisingly, she accepted his offer graciously.  
  
"How did this happen, TK?" Kari whimpered.  
  
"I don't know." He answered quietly. "I'm sorry. I really am. I didn't mean-"  
  
"Shh. Don't ruin it." Kari whispered. TK just nodded in reply and held her for a while.  
  
"Takeru?" Kari said as she broke the silence, or would be if there hadn't been any lightning.  
  
"Yeah?" TK said as he looked down at her in his arms.  
  
"I really do love you." She told him. He mouthed 'I love you too' to her, and gave brought his lips to hers. Kari moaned in pleasure and relief as she felt his warmth set onto her lips. She wrapped one arm around his neck, followed slowly by the other, while TK continued to hold her gently as if he let her go, she would break into thousands of pieces.  
  
"Mmm...TK..." Kari sighed as she broke away from his kiss.  
  
"What." TK asked quietly as he kissed her neck.  
  
"What now?"  
  
"Mmm...What do you mean?" TK asked as his lips left Kari's neck.  
  
"About us. What's going to happen with us."  
  
"I didn't think about it." TK answered quietly. "Do you want us to be together?"  
  
"Man, you're slow." Kari joked.  
  
"So-rry." TK said dramatically. Kari giggled at his tone and kissed him again.  
  
"Well, it's nice to see you kids are doing well." Tai said swiftly as he opened up the fridge.  
  
"Hi Tai." Kari sighed. She stood up and helped pull TK up with her.  
  
"Sorry, didn't mean to ruin the moment." Tai said with his hands in the air.  
  
"It's ok, Tai." Kari chuckled. She led TK over to the couch and sat him down and laid her head on top of his lap. TK just stroked her hair in silence until Kari sprung up off the couch and put on a look of curiosity.  
  
"TK, what happened to Mindy?" Kari asked accusingly.  
  
"She, um...She broke up with me." TK answered quietly.  
  
"What? Why?" Kari asked in a surprised tone.  
  
"She...She broke up with me because she knew I loved you." TK answered sincerely. He looked into Kari's eyes with passion and saw tears in her eyes.  
  
"Kari, what's wrong?" TK asked worriedly as he got up off the couch and wrapped his arms around Kari.  
  
"I just don't understand. How could she see that you loved me and I couldn't?" Kari whimpered.  
  
"I don't know, maybe you weren't looking to see if I loved you." TK joked. He started to kiss her neck when she nudged away.  
  
"Doesn't that make you wonder? I mean, I loved you and I knew it, so why wouldn't I look in your eyes to see you feel the same unless..."  
  
"Kari, don't beat yourself up because you doubted me. I doubted you too, that's why I went out with Mindy. I didn't think I'd ever go out with you."  
  
"But..."  
  
"Shh." TK said as he placed a finger on Kari's lips. "Just forget about it, ok?"  
  
"Oh TK." Kari sighed. She slumped onto the couch and looked out into the rain. "Our relationship isn't going to be the same, you know. I...It's going to be hard to trust you, because you-" Kari started.  
  
"Because I hit you..." TK finished quietly. He wrapped his arms around Kari and she wrapped her arms around him and pulled him close to her. He sighed in slight frustration.  
  
"I'm willing to sacrifice a couple of chances at trust if you are."  
  
"I am. I really do want to be with you, I just worry that-"  
  
"Kari, don't worry about today. Don't worry about tomorrow or yesterday, either. These are our teenage days, and these are the days we go at, head on." Kari nodded in agreement, and rested her head on his shoulder as they both fell asleep to the sounds of the rain. 


End file.
